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659. Artist Ariadne Faries’ “Being Curaçao” Photo Series Part 1

Though Facebook is a major distraction most of the time, I’m also very grateful to Facebook, for it has introduced me to a very awesome Curaçao painter, graphic designer and photographer: Ariadne Faries. This is the first installment of Ariadne’s ‘Being Curaçao’ photo series… because the truth is awesome… so are cultural curiosities… so are the beliefs held by some of Curaçao’s people. So this is Curaçao just being… herself.

Wash Day in Fleur de Marie. An environmentally friendly benefit of life on the equator, intimacy included.

“She’s a spiritual medium, a fortune teller. Her cigar ashes tell a person’s past, present and future. I had never met her before and only wanted to take photos of her while smoking her cigar… All of a sudden she started telling me all kinds of things about my life. She even knew things about my dead parents. Most were true or became true…” – Ariadne Faries

“I found this Altá (alter) at the house of the most famous Montadó (alter mounter) in Curaçao. It was set up the day before Easter Sunday. In the ‘Kulto di Misterio’, the name of this religion, Jesus Christ occupies a position directly under ‘The Good God’.”

Perhaps not an image that would show up on Curaçao Tourism Board pamphlets, but in my opinion, this is precisely what makes Curaçao so awesome… and examples can be found all over the island. Creativity defined by Merriam-Webster: “Ability to produce something new through imaginative skill, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form. The term generally refers to a richness of ideas and originality of thinking. Psychological studies of highly creative people have shown that many have a strong interest in apparent disorder, contradiction, and imbalance, which seem to be perceived as challenges. Such individuals may possess an exceptionally deep, broad, and flexible awareness of themselves.”

“In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they’re still beautiful.” View from Seru Bientu in the Christoffelpark.